There is a game called "Countries." The game consists of subgames with names such as "U.S.A.," "France," "U.K.," "Australia," "China," etc.

Each sub-game has its own "territory," often "bordered" by rivers or seas, which is shown on a map with all the other "territories," to define the area of each sub-game, so all players know which sub-game they are playing. 

The Game of Countries is itself a sub-game of the Great Game called Life on Earth, itself a subgame of Universal Creation.

The players true Self in the Creation Game are called Souls, these Souls have bodies, that interact with each other in the Game of Countries through fictional pieces (called citizens) ruled by other fictions called government. In the Great Game all Souls are equal co-creators of the game; in the sub-game of Countries the pieces are not equal at all, nor are they in harmony.  Countries are  made up of pieces called citizens, in the Game of countries the countries are in competition with each other for import surpluses, natural resources, and hegemony. 

In the Game of countries, some pieces are considered more important and more powerful than other pieces. The pieces are called names like "king," "queen," "emperor," "president," "prime minister," "senator," "representative," "secretary," "judge," "general," "captain," "governor," "attorney," "marshal," "sheriff," "policeman," "policewoman," "lawyer," "businessman," "businesswoman," "doctor," "soldier," "citizen," "employer," "employee," "taxpayer," "voter," "parent," "child," "teacher," "preacher," "journalist," "employee," "criminal," "illegal immigrant," etc.

The pieces considered to be most important (joined in associations called "governments," "monarchies," etc.) make up the rules of their games as they go along. The rules are called "laws." The "most important players" change the rules whenever they like. The scores of the games are kept with tokens called "money."

The boards on which the games are played have good squares, neutral squares, and bad squares. If a piece lands on a good square, the player might win a million tokens or get a promotion and exchange his or her piece for a more important piece. If a piece lands on a neutral square, the player just continues as usual.

If a piece lands on a bad square, the player might get sick or die, or might have "money" tokens or "property" "seized" by the "most important players," or is locked up in "jail" by the "most important players." Sometimes when two pieces land on the same square, they form a union called "marriage" - this could be good, neutral, or bad.

The "most important players" compel the players with pieces called "children" to move them into squares called "schools," where the pieces are "educated" so they will learn that this game called "Countries" is the "only" game. The children of some subgames are also "taught" that their subgame is the best game in the world, and that other subgames are bad. Of course, they are also "educated" on how to play the game.

Sometimes the "most important players" organize their own subgame called "war." The purpose of this subgame is to destroy as many pieces as possible. When a player's piece is destroyed, the player is killed and buried. Sometimes these "war" games also involve taking over the subgame of others, so as to expand the "territory" of their own subgame.

The game called "Countries" also has elements called "problems" that need to be "solved." These "problems" are called names like: "terrorism," "unemployment," "inflation," "depression," "drug addiction," "pollution," "crime," "suicide," etc.

Practically all humans have been "educated," throughout their lives, to believe that they must play the silly little game called "Countries," and its silly little subgames like "U.S.A.," "France," "U.K.," "Australia," "China," etc. And if they don't like the game, they must change it by begging "the most important players" to change some of the rules.

Horror of horrors! Humans are "educated" to believe that this legal game is real life. They have no idea that what they are doing is just playing a arbitrary, optional game, by free will choice, and that they can play many other games if they wish.

Is it justified to ask whether practically all humans are like characters in an Alice-in-Wonderland dream who never wake up?

As the Information Age technologies dissolve the "borders" of geography, and we expand beyond the limited game of countries to a higher perspective challenge, the Game of Life, we will create a new society where the norm is to think and live freely.